Friday, December 30, 2005

George Bush: Best Economic Steward Ever?

Data presented via Econopundit:Using readily available BLS data Arnold Kling has annualized five-year average annual productivity growth for all half-decades between 1955 and 2005 and arrived at this striking result:1955-1960 - 2.031960-1965 - 2.791965-1970 - 2.091970-1975 - 2.311975-1980 - 1.551980-1985 - 1.381985-1990 -1.651990-1995 - 1.591995-2000 - 2.282000-2005 - 3.39The numbers show the average rate of growth of United States productivity during the past five years is the highest it has been for the past fifty years.Why does it matter? Follow Econopundit's link to Mr. Kling's article and see:"[P]roductivity is the best single measure of what leads to differences in economic performance. Even though GDP per capita is the all-encompassing measure, GDP per capita is determined primarily, almost entirely, by productivity.What the table [above] says is that the economy today is in great shape. The average productivity growth in the last five years is the highest over the past half century.So where's the accolades from the professional economists and the mainstream media? While Kling gives Bush little credit for these stats, the media tends to heap lavish praise on Presidents who oversee a positive economic climate, even if they may have little to do with it...Bill Clinton was worshiped as an fiduciary god for overseeing an economic explosion based upon the stock speculation and manipulation of emerging internet/telecommunications companies; for which he had nothing to do with whatsoever (oh, wait, Al Gore did invent the thing, right?). Productivity is a much higher moral/economic production value, so again, where's the credit?Personally, I hope there is still a rock to carve on Mt. Rushmore...Link to Econopundit here: http://www.econopundit.com/archive/2005_12_01_econopundit_archive.html#113588324225075573